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Healthy Recipes & Tips for Teen Moms-to-Be

{by Marie Dittmer}

Nutrition is always important, but it is super important during pregnancy. How and what you eat and drink affects the outcome of your pregnancy and the health of both you and your baby. A nourishing diet that provides adequate calories, protein, vitamins, and minerals keeps mom and baby healthy, and helps baby grow and develop.

If you’re a pregnant teenager, there are additional challenges. There’s the potential for premature delivery, low birth weight for the baby, or anemia. In addition, a teen mom-to-be is still growing and developing herself and needs to eat to support growth for both her and her baby. That means eating enough nourishing food to gain a healthy amount of weight, and provide the vitamins and minerals needed for a healthy pregnancy.

That can be challenging if you eat a typical adolescent diet. Teens commonly skip meals, snack on foods that provide little nutritional substance, and tend to eat more fast foods and convenience foods. A lack of cooking experience or a limited food supply at home makes it even harder.

That being said, pregnant teens want to have healthy babies. And eating healthy and gaining enough weight are key factors for a healthy baby. But how do you overcome some of the challenges listed above? Here are a few ideas:

• Don’t skip meals. Pregnancy requires a lot of calories and nutrients, and it’s easier to get them in if you space them out throughout the day rather than trying to eat it all at one or two meals.
• Replace soft drinks with milk to provide needed calcium and more protein to the diet.
• Keep snacks around that are convenient, but nourishing, like apples, oranges, baby carrots, bananas, celery sticks, grape tomatoes, whole grain crackers, cheese slices, string cheese, graham crackers, yogurt, pretzels, and single-serving packets of nuts or dried fruit. Some of these you could even keep in a locker at school for a quick snack between classes.
• Make healthier choices at fast food restaurants. Ask for milk or juice instead of soda. Instead of fries, ask for a side salad, apples slices, or other fruit cup. Try items like grilled chicken sandwiches, baked potatoes, or chili instead of burgers or deep fat fried foods.
• If breakfast is rushed in the morning, try prepping a few things the night before. Make hard-boiled eggs, peanut butter and banana (or jelly) sandwiches, bagels with cheese or peanut butter, or fruit smoothies that can be frozen individually and taken out in the morning to enjoy on the way to school.
• Utilize community programs such as WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) if you have trouble affording healthier food. They offer resources and education to help you and your baby.

For more ideas look at these online resources for more information and support:

• The Nurtured Mama
• The Foodie Physician
• The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
• The Nutritionist Reviews

If you are new to cooking, here are a few easy meal and snack ideas to get you started:

• Make quesadillas with whole grain tortillas, cheese, and tomato slices.
• Try tuna salad, made with Greek yogurt instead of mayonnaise, on whole grain bread.
• Whole grain pasta with spaghetti sauce and a sprinkling of cheese makes a quick and easy lunch or dinner.
• Instead of jelly, make a peanut butter sandwich with a sliced banana.
• Fill a whole grain tortilla with cheese and thin sliced apple, heated in the microwave until the cheese melts.
• Make a batch of muffins on Sunday and enjoy them for breakfast throughout the week.
• Fill celery sticks with peanut butter and top with raisins or dried cranberries for a tasty snack.
• Try cottage cheese with some canned mandarin oranges or peaches for a snack.
• Dip baby carrots or cucumber slices in hummus instead of sour cream based dips.

Here are a few recipe ideas to get you started on expanding your healthy eating habits:

Easy Mini Frittatas from Healthy Ideas Place

12 Quick and Healthy Pregnancy Snacks from Super Healthy Kids

Cherry Oatmeal Bowl from Amy Gorin Nutrition

8 Simply Healthy Meals Teens Can Make 

Quick and Easy Veggie Pizza Rounds from Healthy Ideas Place

Easy Peasy Black Bean & Butternut Squash Burritos from Nutrition Instincts 

Baked Sweet Potatoes from Healthy Ideas Place

Double Chocolate Banana Muffins from Not Quite Amish

Favorite Kid-Friendly Healthy Snacks via Healthy Ideas Place

Simple Baked Eggs from Not Quite Amish

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